The Three Paths
by FlyingFox01
Summary: When RainClan deputy, Stoneheart, brings a kit to the clan, he says it belongs to him and a rogue. Ravenpaw and Skypaw, apprentices of RainClan, believe the kit is part of the same prophecy they are apart of. They just need to try and convince the kit. (Might change the rating.)
1. Cats and Clans

**RainClan**

**Leader: **Mothstar- Light golden-brown she-cat

**Deputy: **Stonheart- Gray tom

**Medicine Cat: **Yellowclaw- Brown-tan tom

**Warriors:**

Rosefoot- Gray she-cat. **Apprentice- **Cinderpaw

Squirreltail- Ginger tom **Apprentice- **Skypaw

Redfeather- Ginger tom

Wolfthorn- Gray and white tom

Mouseleaf- Light brown she-cat with white paws **Apprentice- **Ravenpaw

Mistystep- Very light gray she-cat **Apprentice- **Sagepaw

Petalfire- Ginger she-cat

**Apprentices:**

Cinderpaw- Gray tom with a limp foreleg

Skypaw- Fluffy white tom

Ravenpaw- Gray and black she-cat

Sagepaw- Light brown tom with a twisted jaw and almost blind in one eye

**Queens:**

Larkwing- Brown she-cat. Mother of Graykit (Gray tom), Echokit (Tortoiseshell she-cat), Briarkit (Brown she-cat), and Silverkit (Silver she-cat)

Moonwater- Silver tabby she-cat. Expecting Wolfthorn's kits.

**Elders:**

Tornpelt- Gray tom with matted and torn fur

Bluenose- Gray-blue she-cat

**FlareClan**

**Leader: **Thornstar- Dark brown tom

**Deputy: **Bramblestep- Black and white tom

**Medicine Cat: **Brightflame- Ginger she-cat **Apprentice- **Honeypaw

**Warriors:**

Owlfoot- Dark brown tabby tom with a twisted foot

Sparrowflight- Sandy colored she-cat **Apprentice- **Vixenpaw

Tigershine- Brown tom **Apprentice- **Stagpaw

Cindertail- Smoky-colored she-cat

Pinetooth- Pale tabby tom with a twisted fang

**Apprentices:**

Honeypaw- Light brown she-cat

Vixenpaw- Ginger and white she-cat

Stagpaw- Brown tom

**Queens:**

Finchfur- Gray tabby she-cat. Expecting Pinetooth's kits

**Elders:**

Snowpelt- White she-cat

Leafwhisker- Tortoiseshell and white she-cat

**LightningClan**

**Leader:** Stormstar- Gray tom

**Deputy: **Webfur- Silver-gray tabby tom **Apprentice- **Aspenpaw

**Medicine Cat: **Barkpelt- Brown tom

**Warriors: **

Wrenfeather- Black she-cat

Lizardtail- Gray she-cat

Cloudfall- Gray and white tom **Apprentice- **Blackpaw

Softpelt- Mottled brown she-cat

Firelight- Ginger she-cat

**Apprentices:**

Aspenpaw- Gray tom

Blackpaw- Black tom

**Queens:**

Goldenblaze- Golden-colored she-cat. Mother of Badgerkit (Black and white she-cat) and Foxkit (Ginger she-cat)

**Elders:**

Poolmist- Gray she-cat

**Cats Outside The Clans**

Lily- Gray she-cat.

Starling- Fluffy gray she-cat. Lily and Stoneheart's daughter

Plum- Black she-cat. Kittypet

Blitz- Brown and white tom. Plum's brother


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1:** **Starling**

"She's special. I can tell, Stoneheart." Starling looked up at her mother as she was passed to a strange gray cat.

"All queens say that." The cat, Stoneheart, meowed.

"You know what I mean." She hissed.

"Anyway, what about the other kits? Where are they?"

"Plum and Blitz said their Twolegs would take care of them." She sighed.

"Lily..." Stoneheart sighed.

"I have to go...I love you both." Lily mewed, then darted into the bushes.

"Mama?" Starling got up to follow her, but Stoneheart picked her up by her scruff.

"Larkwing will care for you. Hopefully. She already has so many kits..." Starling drowned him out and whimpered.

_M-Mama doesn't want me? But...You said you loved me, Mama... _Starling began to doze off. _Prove you love me, Mama...Come back._

* * *

"Hurry up, Skypaw. Before I'm an elder." Came a low growl.

Skypaw picked up the mouse he caught and sighed. "I'm coming, Squirreltail." _More like Squirrel_brain.

They approached camp and saw their deputy, Stoneheart, with a small kit in his jaws. A golden brown she-cat and a brown tom came over to them.

"Who's this, Stoneheart?" The she-cat meowed.

He set the kit down. "Mothstar, this is my daughter, Starling. Her mother is a rogue."

Murmurs rippled throughout the camp.

"Can you believe this?" Came a meow. Skypaw looked over and saw Ravenpaw, his best friend, coming up to him. He set the mouse in the fresh-kill pile.

"A bit."

"What?" Ravenpaw's eyes were wide with shock.

"Hush, you two!" Squirreltail snapped.

"Your daughter, eh?" Mothstar mumbled. She looked over at the brown tom. "Well, Yellowclaw. What shall we do with her?"

The tiny kit, Starling's, eyes suddenly opened and she wailed. "Mama! Mama!" Stoneheart set the scrap down and she looked around frantically.

Yellowclaw sighed. "Well, take her to my den. I'll check over her and then we can send her to the nursery. Larkwing can care for her. The kits are lonely."

Starling wailed once more and the next thing Skypaw knew, Stoneheart had cut a notch in his own daughter's ear. "Hush!" He snapped.

"Stoneheart!" Mothstar gasped. Without thinking, Skypaw went over to Starling, picked her up, and carried her to Yellowclaw's den.

"Skypaw? Wait up!" Ravenpaw called after him. He set the kit down and Yellowclaw padded into the den.

"Thank you, I suppose." Yellowclaw muttered. Mothstar entered the den.

"Skypaw, meet me in my den. Ravenpaw, go find Mouseleaf, Cinderpaw, Squirreltail, and...Moonwater, if she would like and tell them they need to patrol the borders. Of course, you'll go with them." She meowed.

"Yes, Mothstar." Ravenpaw rushed out of the den. Mothstar mumbled something to Yellowclaw as Skypaw left the medicine cat den. He went inside the ivy-and-bramble-shaded leader's den. He sat down in front of the leader's nest.

_Why does Moonwater get to go? Just because she hasn't moved into the nursery doesn't mean she needs to do warrior stuff. Mothstar knows that. _He growled at the thought.

"Skypaw." Mothstar stepped in and sat in her nest. "I appreciate what you did. You helped Starling even though she wasn't born into RainClan. But that didn't concern you. You should have left it to me or Yellowclaw or any of the senior warriors."

"It concerned the clan, therefore it concerned me, Mothstar." Skypaw mumbled.

"Hm. So you think." Mothstar narrowed her eyes.

"Also, Moonwater's kits could come any day now. She shouldn't be going on patrol. Just because she hasn't moved into the nursery doesn't mean she can wander around the forest where there are foxes and badgers and rogues." Skypaw got up and turned to leave. "Think of the individual cats in the clan before you think about the whole clan." He left and looked over at the nursery. He saw Larkwing squeezing out and her kits tumbled after her.

"Briarkit, you be the evil FlareClan cat trying to get into the nursery." Graykit, the only tom in the nursery so far, called over to his sister.

"Okay!" Briarkit squeaked.

Graykit looked over at Echokit. "Echokit, you can be the kit."

"But I'm never a warrior in the games we play, Graykit!" The tiny tortoiseshell complained. "It's never fair!"

"But you're smaller than everyone else and you'll just get in the way." Graykit replied. He looked over at Silverkit. "You can be my deputy, Silverkit! Because I'm the leader."

"Oh...Okay, Graykit!" Silverkit said softly. Skypaw padded over to them.

"I think it's fair to let Echokit be the leader this time, Graykit." He meowed.

"But she's no fair! She's too bossy!" He wailed.

"_She's _bossy and no fair? Then what are you?" Skypaw retorted.

"Skypaw! Leave Graykit alone." Larkwing hissed. "Go pester someone else."

Skypaw growled and went over to the fresh-kill pile.

"Hi, Skypaw." Came a mew. He looked over and saw Sagepaw coming up to him.

"Hi, Sagepaw." Skypaw stretched and picked out a vole. Sagepaw was bigger and older than Skypaw. He would be a warrior by now, but, as a kit, he tried to follow Yellowclaw out of camp and fell, breaking his jaw and blinding him in one eye. He was a good, kind cat, though, and he was smart and patient.

"Larkwing is givin' you a hard time, isn't she?" Sagepaw picked out a shrew. "She's a good mother, but she spoils her kits."

"Yeah." Skypaw sighed, taking a bite of his vole.

"Hopefully, Moonwater's kits won't go crazy from Graykit's bossing and complaining." Sagepaw purred. Moonwater was his sister and he loved her more than anything. She was always there for him.

"One kit turned out okay, though." Skypaw swallowed.

"You mean Silverkit?" Sagepaw tilted his head and bit into the shrew. "I guess."

"She might make a good warrior."

"She'd make an even better medicine cat." Sagepaw yawned.

"Silverkit will be a _warrior_!" Larkwing cried. Sagepaw quickly looked behind him, his good eye wide with fear.

"I- I'm sorry, Larkwing. I-"

"I've had enough of you two making fun of my kits." She glared at Skypaw. "Especially you, Skypaw! Just because you had a tough kithood doesn't mean you can make other kits miserable as well!" With that, the queen stomped away.

Skypaw growled. He remembered his kithood like it happened just moments ago. His brothers were too weak and died shortly after birth, and a moon before he was apprenticed, his mother was killed in battle. His father was exiled when he was born.

"Come on, Skypaw," Sagepaw mumbled. "Let's see how Starling's doing."

"Fine..." Skypaw sighed and followed Sagepaw to Yellowclaw's den. Inside, they saw Yellowclaw picking up Starling, who was asleep. Mothstar brushed past Skypaw and Sagepaw as she entered the den.

"Yellowclaw, please take Starling to the nursery and explain everything to Larkwing. Tell her the kit's name is Starlingkit." She demanded. Yellowclaw nodded and carried Starling, now Starlingkit, out. Mothstar then turned to Sagepaw and said, "Go find Mistystep and tell her to meet me in my den. Skypaw," She faced the white-furred apprentice next. "Go find Ravenpaw's patrol and tell Moonwater to return to camp immediately."

The two nodded and left the den.

* * *

Ravepaw sniffed the air. "Nothing." She reported.

"_I _smell FlareClan warriors." Cinderpaw hissed.

"Same here..." Mouseleaf agreed

"Where are they heading?" Squirreltail's fur along his spine spiked up.

Mouseleaf sniffed the air some more. "Towards the Thunderpath...Near LightningClan territory."

Squirreltail let out a sigh of relief. "That's good."

"Moonwater!" Came a yowl. The patrol turned their heads and saw Skypaw running towards them. "Moonwater!" He yowled again.

The young she-cat looked up. "Skypaw? What is it?" She got up, struggling with her swollen belly.

"M-Mothstar...says you need to...come back to camp...right away." Skypaw panted.

"She did? Why?" Moonwater's eyes suddenly filled with concern. "Is Sagepaw okay?"

"He's fine." Skypaw assured her. "Mothstar just needs you back at camp."

"Oh. Okay, then." Moonwater looked back at Squirreltail.

The ginger cat nodded and turned to Mouseleaf. "You go, too. We'll meet you there soon."

Mouseleaf nodded and followed Moonwater and Skypaw back to camp.


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: The Prophecy**

The next day, Skypaw, Ravenpaw, and Sagepaw padded into the nursery. Mothstar had told Moonwater she had to move in immediately, so the young queen was curled up in the nest next to Larkwing. Larkwing's kits were playing around with a moss ball, and Starlingkit was curled close to Larkwing's belly.

"Hello, Ravenpaw." Larkwing purred. She glared at Sagepaw and Skypaw.

"Hi, Larkwing! We just came to see Starlingkit." Ravenpaw purred.

"I just came to see Moonwater." Sagepaw mumbled.

"Don't you dare bother her. She's exhausted." Larkwing snapped. Sagepaw shrank back. Starlingkit looked up at the three apprentices.

"H-Hello..." She stammered.

"Hi, Starlingkit." Skypaw greeted her.

"Is Mama here?" Starlingkit looked behind Skypaw curiously.

"Um...No." Skypaw tilted his head to the side.

"Your mother doesn't want you anymore, badger brain." Came a snarl. Cinderpaw limped in, staring down at Starlingkit. "Why else would she get rid of you?"

"Mama told me she loved me before she left!" Starlingkit protested.

"You're just a dumb little kit, aren't you? All mothers say that. They don't mean it." Cinderpaw lashed his tail.

Skypaw went between Cinderpaw and Starlingkit. "Enough, Cinderpaw. Just because you had a fight with your mother and because you can never be a warrior doesn't mean you can be so snake-hearted. Starlingkit's mother probably loved her, and Larkwing loves her too."

"What would you know about a mother's love?" Cinderpaw sneered. "Your mother is dead."

The whole clan seemed to go silent. Skypaw unsheathed his claws, ready to rip Cinderpaw's pelt off.

"Black claws." Ravepaw mewed. "Impossible for a cat. Not a cat of prophecy, though." She inhaled deeply and recited the prophecy. "Three cats, three paths. One cat with black wherever he steps, his path leading to power. The second cat with the power to see the dead, their path leading to peace. The third cat with lightning in their paws, their path leading to something not even StarClan can see."

Skypaw ignored her and growled, "Your mother never even wanted you, Cinderpaw. That's why she died."

"Littleowl betrayed her and you know it!" Cinderpaw cried. Littleowl was Skypaw's mother.

"My mother went nowhere near your mother!"

"She pushed her into the Thunderpath and killed her!"

"Enough!" Moonwater yowled. "You two are fighting like Graykit and Echokit!"

"Don't drag my kits into this!" Larkwing snarled.

"What is going on?" Mothstar padded into the den. Stoneheart and Yellowclaw followed her.

"Cinderpaw started it!" Starlingkit piped up.

"This doesn't concern you, Starlingkit." Stoneheart growled.

Mothstar looked over at Sagepaw. "Mistystep wants to see you, Sagepaw."

"Oh." Sagepaw slunk out of the nursery.

Mothstar sighed. "Skypaw, Ravenpaw, Cinderpaw. Please leave the nursery. I would like a word with Larkwing and Moonwater."

"Gladly." Cinderpaw limped out.

Ravenpaw went over to Yellowclaw and whispered something. The old cat nodded and led her away to his den.

Skypaw sighed and went to the elders' den. Tornpelt looked up and purred. "Hello, Skypaw. Come to visit us?"

"Sort of." Skypaw mumbled. "Can you tell me a bit about my mother, Tornpelt? Since you're her father?"

Tornpelt sat up. "Of course. What would you like to know?"

"Everything."

Tornpelt purred. "Alright. Well, she was white-furred like you. She was always sweet and loving and energetic. One time, she tried to go out and hunt. Mothstar, Mothpaw at the time, managed to stop her. I remember her first battle..." He sighed. "She fought like a LionClan cat. She was so strong...She was made a warrior after that battle. When she fell in love with Reedleg, not even her own mother approved. No one did."

"Why was my father exiled?" Skypaw mewed.

"I don't quite remember..." He turned to Bluenose. "Why was Reedleg exiled, Bluenose?"

The gray-blue she-cat looked up. "Reedleg? He took Lightstar's last life in battle."

"Ah yes. Lightstar. He was a wonderful leader." Tornpelt looked down at Skypaw. "When you were born, your father killed Lightstar, the leader before Mothstar. Mothstar then exiled him. Your mother was possibly the best mother in the forest. She loved you more than anyone in the clan."

"How'd she die?" Skypaw's eyes widened. He could barely remember the battle.

"Well, she and Redfeather were trying to protect you." Tornpelt chuckled. "Well, Littleowl protected Redfeather _and _you." He sighed. "Stormstar of LightningClan killed her..."


End file.
